Live PD: Police Patrol

Pawn Stars

IMDb: 6.5

2009

30min

Pawn Stars is an American reality television series, shown on History, and produced by Leftfield Pictures. The series is filmed in Las Vegas, Nevada, where it chronicles the daily activities at the World Famous Gold & Silver Pawn Shop, a 24-hour family business opened in 1989 and operated by patriarch Richard “Old Man” Harrison, his son Rick Harrison, Rick’s son Corey “Big Hoss” Harrison, and Corey’s childhood friend, Austin “Chumlee” Russell. The show, which became the network’s highest rated show, and the No. 2 reality show behind Jersey Shore, debuted on July 26, 2009. Reruns can be seen on History as well as its sister network Lifetime, which added the show in December 2010.

The series depicts the staff’s interactions with customers, who bring in a variety of artifacts to sell or pawn and who are shown haggling over the price and discussing its historical background, with narration provided by the Harrisons and occasionally Chumlee. The series also follows the interpersonal conflicts among the cast. One reviewer referencing these conflicts described the show as a version of Antiques Roadshow “hijacked by American Chopper’s” Teutul family. TV Guide has offered a similar description, calling the show “one part Antiques Roadshow, a pinch of LA Ink and a dash of COPS”.

You The Jury

K.Michelle: My Life

IMDb: 7

2014

30min

Reality show following the daily life of the fabulous K Michelle. Through her busy schedule, heartbreaks, and friend drama, Kimberly always finds a way to come out on top be turning her pain into music.

Pit Bulls and Parolees

IMDb: 6.5

2009

60min

Follow Tia Torres, founder of Villalobos Rescue Center, and her family as they rehabilitate both felons and ill-reputed pit bulls who come together to rescue one another from their dim pasts, and bring new meaning to life.

Married to Medicine

IMDb: 5.5

2013

43min

Follows a group of successful and educated women who are connected to the world of medicine in Atlanta, including doctors and wives of doctors. Whether delivering babies in Louboutins or rushing off to galas in Buckhead, these women do everything with style, drama, and of course, southern flair.

Judge Judy

IMDb: 5.1

1996

22min

Judge Judy is an American arbitration-based reality court show presided over by retired Manhattan Family Court Judge Judith Sheindlin. The show features Sheindlin adjudicating real-life small claims disputes within a simulated courtroom set. All parties involved must sign contracts, agreeing to arbitration under Sheindlin. The series is in first-run syndication and distributed by CBS Television Distribution.

Judge Judy, which premiered on September 16, 1996, reportedly revitalized the court show genre. Only two other arbitration-based reality court shows preceded it, The People’s Court and Jones and Jury. Sheindlin has been credited with introducing the “tough” adjudicating approach into the judicial genre, which has led to several imitators. The two court shows that outnumber Judge Judy’s seasons, The People’s Court and Divorce Court, have both lasted via multiple lives of production and shifting arbiters, making Sheindlin’s span as a television arbiter the longest.

By 2011, Judge Judy had been nominated 14 consecutive years for Daytime Emmy Awards without ever winning. On June 14, 2013, however, Judge Judy won its first Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Legal/Courtroom Program on its 15th nomination. It is the first long-running, highly-rated court show to win an Emmy.

I Am Jazz

IMDb: 5.7

2015

22min

Meet Jazz Jennings! Jazz is a transgender teenage girl who has been living as a girl since she was in kindergarten. Parents Jeanette and Greg have spent the years finding doctors to treat their daughter, while fighting the discrimination and misconceptions associated with what it means to be transgender. But, now that Jazz is 14, she is on the brink of the biggest challenge of her life: high school.

Property Brothers

IMDb: 6.7

2011

45min

Property Brothers is a Canadian reality television series that is produced by Cineflix. It airs on W Network and HGTV. Identical twin brothers Jonathan and Drew Scott help home buyers to purchase and renovate “fixer-uppers.”

Drew is a real estate expert who scouts neglected houses and negotiates the purchases. His identical twin brother Jonathan is a licensed contractor who does the renovations of the houses. Together, the Property Brothers help families find, buy, and transform fixer-uppers into dream homes on a strict time-line and strict budget.

Each episode starts with the brothers showing buyers a house with everything on their wish list that tends to be substantially over their budget. Afterward, the brothers show them fixer-uppers with potential to become their dream home. After the buyers narrow it down to two houses, the brothers use computer-generated imagery to reveal their re-imagined vision of the home after renovations.

The show has a condensed time-line of the renovations. Typical of home improvement shows with an accelerated renovation format, the brothers have three experienced crews work on the house to finish in the 4 to 6 week timeline. They work with real project budgets set out by the buyers. The buyers own the property and pay for the remodelling, but the show is able to provide about $20,000 to $25,000 worth of furnishings.

Undercover Boss

Each episode depicts a person who has a high management position at a major business, deciding to become undercover as an entry-level employee to discover the faults in the company.

The first series, consisting of two episodes was aired in 2009 followed by a second series consisting of six episodes one year later. This original series sparked the Undercover Boss franchise.

Localised versions of the show format are currently being produced in the United States, Australia, Germany and Canada and soon to be in Denmark, Spain, Turkey, Sweden, Norway, Belgium, Netherlands and Israel.

America’s Got Talent

IMDb: 5.6

2006

60min

America’s Got Talent is an American reality television series on the NBC television network, and part of the global British Got Talent franchise. It is a talent show that features singers, dancers, magicians, comedians, and other performers of all ages competing for the advertised top prize of one million dollars. The show debuted in June 2006 for the summer television season. From season three onwards, the prize includes the one million dollars, payable in a financial annuity over 40 years, and a show as the headliner on the Las Vegas Strip.

Among its significant features were that it gave an opportunity to talented amateurs or unknown performers, with the results decided by an audience vote. The format is a popular one and has often been reworked for television in the United States and the United Kingdom.

The current incarnation was created by Simon Cowell, and was originally due to be a 2005 British series called Paul O’Grady’s Got Talent but was postponed due to O’Grady’s acrimonious split with broadcaster ITV. As such, the American version became the first full series of the franchise. Despite Cowell’s involvement in the show’s production, his contract with Fox for his involvement with American Idol prevented him from being involved in the show as a judge. After leaving Idol Cowell began to produce and judge a version of The X Factor for Fox in 2011.

A Night with My Ex

IMDb: 2.8

2017

min

Ex-couples are brought together for one night in a multi-camera-rigged one-bedroom apartment, with no producers and no interruptions, to hash out their unresolved issues. Viewers witness startling confessions, wild hook ups, and shocking resolutions in a format where anything can – and does – happen.